Secretaries who believe they rule the unit or hospital

[DesiDani]

Or unit secretaries who believe they literally run a unit. These people have no medical training at times and are not certified or licensed, yet they feel they have the authority to tell the RNs what to do.

I don't get it, why????

[Altra, BSN, RN]

Secretaries run the unit logistics. Yes, you as a nurse are focused on the clinical care of your patients, but all that logistical stuff in the background enables you to do that.

In my experience, it's common for newer nurses to be pretty unaware of the organizational/logistical grease that makes the wheels spin ... and so we have "conflicts" such as the OP describes.

Consider the posts in this thread from those who work without ancillary help -- then reconsider how you can better work with them.

[FolksBtrippin, BSN, RN]

Yea.. can definitely relate to the OP here. Where I've worked, secretaries think that they have the lay of the land on a given unit. It's especially bad when the secretary has a lot of seniority. They think they're some sort of proxy for the managers because they pass out newsletters or answer the phone for the unit. Like they're some sort of communication hub. They also control the stationary and office supplies for the unit which emboldens them furthers.

I think part of this phenomenon is due to secretaries and unit clerks being from the lower socioeconomic strata of American women. They're on par with waitresses, cashiers, babysitters and act as low class as the group they originate from.

Nothing like some good old fashioned classism to decide an issue. Why bother trying to understand the dynamics on this particular floor when you can instantly write off the whole issue with prejudicial beliefs?

It does beg the question that if poorly paid workers are grumpy, might it be at least partly due to the fact that by definition they have all the stressors that come from not having enough money?

[FolksBtrippin, BSN, RN]

"Maybe you are new" is a tired played out response.

Examples not listening to staff because "she is not relevant to me!". I don't care how good you are at your job, or how much of an assets you are, it doesn't excuse bullying behavior.

Examples: going into patient's (confused/psych) room to literally yell at them to be quiet.

I can tell that you are having a hard time with your unit secretary. The problem with your original post is that you generalized your problem to the position instead of the actual person you're dealing with. It was impossible for us to tell whether the US was actually out of line or not. So people assumed based on what they experience.

And as you can see, many of the nurses here like their unit secretaries very much.

The post that I quoted here, is a much better example of your problem. The US should not tell a patient to be quiet. "she is not relevant to me" is is hard to understand out of context. What was that about?

[Pat_Pat RN]

I was a UC in the ER before getting my RN. UCs DO run the unit. Things don't happen without them. If that chair is empty, it puts a whole lot of stress on everyone else. Sometimes UCs can anticipate what the docs will order, and that depends on the UC and the doc and the understanding they have with each other. One doc told me once, "Order what I meant, not what I write," in reference to ordering a Quantitative HCG instead of a Qualitative. Another doc asked me if there were classes to become a UC, and if so, I should teach them. I really enjoyed that job, probably more than nursing.

[lemur00, BSN, RN]

We had a uc (briefly) who was like this. Would argue with the nurses over clinical decisions and the like, repeatedly claimed all RNs were stupid, etc. Two of the charge nurses went to the manager and threatened to quit if this uc was allowed to pass probation. Thankfully the manager decided they were more valuable.

That said, I find territoriality far less annoying than expecting you to do their job (eg stocking or thinning charts, calling out consults) and then leaving early. Cause nurses have nothing better to do?

[applesxoranges, BSN, RN]

When I was a secretary, the RNs would drive me nuts when they tried to "help" with a transfer. It was like, "no! Stop. We have to coordinate through (service) now to transfer patients. Do not call the hospital directly. I'll get written up."